Bengtie: My death fueled their madness.

Inside the villa.

Qi Zhimu disappeared around the corner of the hall leading to the kitchen.

Ruan Mei subtly withdrew her gaze from his retreating figure, calmly scanning her surroundings.

The layout is similar to the Black Tower's home on the galactic frontier, and the style is basically the same, but—

The space inside that tower was so vast that it seemed to have no boundaries, and dolls could be seen everywhere.

In the past, no one visited, and it was impossible to find another living person.

In addition, Black Tower always tends to stay in fixed areas, so even though the tower is cleaned spotless every day, it doesn't feel very lively.

In contrast, here...

Ruan Mei's gaze shifted again.

Some of the wooden furnishings and decorations have rounded edges, reflecting a soft luster under the light.

The fireplace is clearly a design preserved from an old era; it is very clean inside and there is no charcoal fire.

On the mahogany round table next to the sofa, seven or eight thick books are neatly arranged, covering topics such as medicine and spacetime theory.

Seeing these books, a warm scene involuntarily came to mind for Ruan Mei.

Qi Zhimu and Heita nestled together on the soft sofa, each reading books from different fields, enjoying a peaceful moment.

Then, another image came to mind.

Many years ago, whenever she finished an experiment, she was often so exhausted that she would fall asleep directly on the sofa.

When I wake up, I always find an extra blanket on me, and when I look down, I always see a student sleeping next to me.

Ruan Meixin suddenly felt a pang of pain, forcibly dispelling her memories, and her gaze fell on the distant windowsill.

There were several potted plants over there, and pruning tools were neatly hung to the side.

The Black Tower clearly wouldn't have such leisure time, and corresponding memories from the past were uncontrollably surging forth.

Qi Zhimu carried a water bottle or scissors, pruning the overly long branches of the potted plum blossoms.

She saw it occasionally, but never thought much of it.

But if it's the Black Tower...

The thought that the two of them were in love and lived a harmonious life made Hei Ta think that seeing Qi Zhimu taking care of the potted plants might make her playful, so she quietly approached and covered his eyes.

Or... hug him from behind, press your cheek against his broad back, and whisper a sweet nothing or a greeting.

Given Black Tower's personality, he would never hold back when doing something like this.

Then, recalling how Heita asked her for help with breast augmentation, and the reasons she gave so confidently at the time…

Ruan Mei's breathing became quiet and rapid.

What if Hei Ta gets carried away while cuddling Qi Zhimu and quickly strips him naked, leaving unrestrained traces of their lovemaking in the living room?

If it's a kitchen, will cooking become just cooking... and eventually eating become just eating?

…No, I shouldn't say whether or not.

Rather—that guy did it several times…

On the day she requested breast augmentation, she could tell that Heita had recently engaged in a lot of sexual activity. While gathering materials, she secretly checked out the evidence out of curiosity and came to a definitive conclusion.

…We met five times in just one day…the time spanned from morning to night.

Different times mean different places.

Aside from work hours, she remembered exactly where Qi Zhimu would be during his free time.

That means that Black Tower is almost always proactive... while Qi Zhimu is passive.

"Don't bother looking. This house has been exactly the same as it has been hundreds of years ago. There's nothing to see here."

Black Tower waved his hand in front of Ruan Mei's eyes, then gestured:

"Ruan Mei, please sit down."

Ruan Mei took a deep breath silently, her gaze falling on the sofa that the black tower was pointing to.

The height of that sofa is naturally suitable for certain postures...

There's a carpet underneath, so your limbs won't hurt...

"Knowing Zhimu as I do, he'll bring out tea or juice within two minutes," Black Tower's voice rang out again.

"..."

Ruan Mei suppressed the urge that would inevitably arise when she was alone, longing for Qi Zhimu and feeling miserable.

She remained elegant as usual, walked to the edge of the sofa, sat down, and casually picked up a book.

Seeing her pick up the medical book that Qi Zhimu was reading, Hei Ta didn't think anything was wrong at all.

The only thing that seemed off was that the knowledge in the book was most likely useless to Ruan Mei.

The reason for not mentioning death is to retain a touch of genius, to not easily deny the possibilities of all things.

But Black Tower didn't expect it to be useful.

Seeing Qi Zhimu's handwriting, Ruan Mei couldn't help but recall the past, and the notes he hadn't taken with him when he left after completing his apprenticeship.

Many labeling habits are exactly the same, which is disheartening.

"Ms. Ruan Mei, please have some. I've heard about your preferences from Xiao Ta; I hope it suits your taste."

As Black Tower had predicted, Qi Zhimu served the drinks at a specific time.

Hearing his affectionate nickname for Heita, Ruan Mei felt that, compared to other things, just hearing the term of endearment wasn't enough to make her feel uncomfortable.

But life is always like that, like the coincidence that it rains every time you go out.

If the title isn't enough, what will Black Tower do next?

"You've worked so hard, honey, come closer~"

Qi Zhimu smiled and naturally bent down.

"Mmm—mua—~"

Hei Ta tilted his head back and gave Qi Zhimu a hard kiss on the corner of his mouth, completely ignoring Ruan Mei.

This time it wasn't that she was deliberately showing off her affection; she always did it this way. She simply thought that Ruan Mei would ignore it and continue reading.

Actually...

Ruan Mei nearly lost control of her strength and tore off several pages of the book.

She closed the book, glanced at Qi Zhimu who had returned to the kitchen to prepare dinner, and then turned her gaze to the Black Tower.

Black Tower noticed her gaze and said with a smile:

"Now you know why I told you before that if fate brings you together, you should give it a try. It would be such a blessing to find a man like that."

"When he's busy with work, he can take care of you, like quietly feeding you. Oh, you already know that."

Ruan Mei felt a lump in her throat: "Has he always been in charge of your daily meals...?"

"Yeah, I tried to cook it myself a few times without blowing up the kitchen again, but the taste... well, there's still a little bit of room for improvement."

Hei Ta picked up his teacup and took a sip.

"But as long as it's something I make, Zhi Mu will finish it. He won't praise it against his will, and at least his evaluation gets better and better each time."

"...You've changed." Ruan Mei's tone was devoid of emotion.

"Where has it changed?"

"You never used to waste time doing that kind of thing."

"The past is the past, and the present is the present. You have no idea why I worked so hard before. It was all to find Zhimu again..." Heita said casually.

Unexpectedly, upon hearing these words, Ruan Mei reacted as if a switch had been flipped, her pupils immediately freezing.

"Find...it?"

"Yes, found it, after many years—"

At this point, Hei Ta stopped holding the teacup to his lips, realizing that he couldn't reveal Qi Zhimu's secret.

A smile played at the corners of his lips as he raised an eyebrow at Ruan Mei.

"Would you like to hear our stories from the past?"

"If you're willing to talk."

"Oh dear, come here, I really have to have a chat with you about my experiences with my family from hundreds of years ago to the present!"

Black Tower's face was full of the same look as a fisherman who catches a fish weighing dozens of kilograms but passes by his home three times without going in, deliberately circling around the neighborhood.

Looking at Ruan Mei's eyes, it was as if she had finally found someone she could proudly show off to.